Judge in Ahmaud Arbery Trial to Seat Jury With 11 White People

The judge in the trial over the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, a Black man, will seat a jury consisting of 11 white members and one Black member. This despite the fact that Superior Court Judge Timothy Walmsley found, he said Wednesday, "that there appears to be intentional discrimination" on the part of the defense team during jury selection, CNN reports. But Walmsley said, per the AP, that Georgia law limits what he can do about that. "All the defense needs to do is provide that legitimate, nondiscriminatory, clear, reasonably specific and related reason" why each potential juror was struck, and the defense did so, he said. The race of the four alternate jurors was not disclosed, but an attorney for the Arbery family says none of them are Black.

Prosecutors accused the defense of striking some jurors based on race and disproportionately striking Black jurors, but, as one defense attorney said, "I can give you a race-neutral reason for any one of these." The defense says the jurors who were struck expressed strong opinions about the case, with one telling attorneys she already believed the defendants were guilty. The defense had also expressed concerns about the demographics of the jury; less than half of the 1,000 who were summoned showed up, and last week a defense attorney told the court, "It would appear that white males born in the South, over 40 years of age, without four-year college degrees, sometimes euphemistically known as 'Bubba' or 'Joe Six Pack,' seem to be significantly underrepresented. ... And if it is, then we have a problem with that."

Another defense attorney raised the same issue this week, saying "the accused can't look across the courtroom and see persons that are similarly situated to themselves." But juries must only be representative of race and gender, not socioeconomic background, one legal analyst tells CNN. Greg McMichael and his adult son, Travis McMichael, are accused of pursuing Arbery as he ran in their neighborhood Feb. 23, 2020; their neighbor, William “Roddie” Bryan, is accused of joining the chase and filming Travis McMichael as he allegedly shot and killed the unarmed man. They face a host of charges including murder. The jury selection process, which CNN calls "contentious," took two and a half weeks. Opening statements are set for Friday. (More Ahmaud Arbery stories.)